By playing Nc6, the player enters the Queen's Pawn Game: Chigorin Variation, a system within the Queen's Pawn Game complex. Diverging from the common Queen's Pawn Game (c5), this line chooses Nc6. It succeeds by sacrificing popularity for a statistically stronger weapon. This move exerts pressure on e5 and d4. Note that engines consider this speculative, often preferring safer alternatives.
In the resulting middlegame, players must focus on how to control the key diagonals to exert long-term pressure. Data analysis shows a 45% win rate for White, indicating White advantage.
Also known as: Queen's Pawn: 2.Nf3 Nc6, Queen's Pawn Game: Chigorin Variation, 2. Nf3 Nc6, Chigorin Variation, QP
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